First records of Forcipomyia dichromata Remm (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in Poland and Spain

1 Ryszard Szadziewski1 , Marta Gwizdalska-Kentzer2 First records of Forcipomyia dichromata Remm (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in Poland and Spain https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17310034 1 University of Gdańsk, Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Parasitology, Wita Stwosza 59, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland, e-mail: [email protected], ORCID: 0000-0002-2899-6861 2 University of Gdańsk, Education Quality Office, Jana Bażyńskiego 8, 80-309 Gdańsk, Poland, e-mail: [email protected], ORCID: 0000-0003-3343-0608 Abstract: Forcipomyia (subgenus Forcipomyia) dichromata Remm, in Remm & Zhogolev 1968 is recorded for the first time in Poland and Spain. Earlier, this Western Palaearctic species was reported from Europe (Ukraine, France, Norway), Middle East (Israel, Turkey, Yemen), and Central Asia (Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan). The male was diagnosed and illustrated. Currently the number of biting midges (Ceratopogonidae) reported from Poland increased to 221 and from Spain to 194 species. Key words: biting midge, Northern Poland, Sierra de Tejeda, faunistics. INTRODUCTION Biting midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) are small nematocerous flies which are common in all kinds of aquatic, semiaquatic and moist terrestrial habitats worldwide. Their recent world fauna is relatively well studied and comprises 6276 extant species (Borkent & Dominiak 2020, Borkent et al. 2022). Almost 600 valid species have been reported from Europe (Szadziewski et al. 2013 ). The last checklist of biting midges of Poland includes 220 species (Szadziewski & Dominiak 2016) and of Spain 193 species (Delécolle 2002). Here, the presented short note provides first records of Forcipomyia dichromata Remm from Poland and Spain. MATERIAL AND SITES NE Poland: Pomerania, Trojmiejski Landscape Park, Gdynia, Łęg nad Swelinią reserve (Fig. 1), 54o27’41”N, 18o32’07”E, UTM CF43, 10.09.2011, at light, 2 males, leg. M. Gwizdalska-Kentzer. SW Spain: Andalusia, Malaga province, Sierra de Tejeda, village Puenta de don Manuel, 36o53’18”N, 4o08’47”W, 20.04.1984, forest, caught by hand, 1 male, leg. P. Sura. The examined specimens are mounted on slides in Canada balsam and deposited in the collection of extant invertebrates at the Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Parasitology, University of Gdańsk. ANNALS OF THE UPPER SILESIAN MUSEUM IN BYTOM ENTOMOLOGY Vol. 34 (online 009): 1–4 ISSN 0867-1966, eISSN 2544-039X (online) Bytom, 10.10.2025 2 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Forcipomyia (Forcipomyia) dichromata Remm, 1968 Forcipomyia (subg. Forcipomyia Meigen) dichromata Remm, in Remm & Zhogolev 1968: 826 (male, female, Crimea in Ukraine). Alwin et al. 2016: 363 (records from Israel, Yemen, Turkey); Borkent & Dominiak 2020: 76 (in catalogue); Thunes et al. 2021: 19 (record from Norway); Navai 2021: 238 (female, diagnosis, record from Afghanistan). Forcipomyia (subg. Microhelea Kieffer) dichromata Remm. Remm 1988: 101 (subgeneric placement, records from Ukraine, France, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan). Unfortunately, country records from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are “empty records” because they have no detailed localities. This moderately small species is a typical member of the subgenus Forcipomyia s. str.: wing length of male 1.6-1.7 mm, CR 0.4-0.5; wing membrane covered with slender scale-like macrotrichia; body brown, humeri yellowish, legs pale brownish, genitalia dark brown; tarsal ratio (TR) similar on all legs: TR(1) 0.7, TR(2) 0.6, TR(3) 0.6-0.7; male genitalia typical of the subgenus (Fig. 2C), aedeagus triangular (Fig. 2D). Males of the species are distinct in having broadly fused parameres, apices of parameres pointed, stout (Fig. 2E); third palpal segment with small sensory pit located on swollen base of the segment (Fig. 2A, B). The species is close to F. fuliginosa (Meigen) in having similar male genitalia and low tarsal ratios. They differ mostly in the shape of third palpal segment. In F. fuliginosa sensory pit is located on distal half of third palpal segment while in F. dichromata it is located on proximal half. Moreover, the base of fused parameres in F. dichromata is almost W-shaped while in F. fuliginosa U-shaped. Fig. 1. Collecting site in Łęg nad Swelini reserve, N Poland (April 2025). 3 Biting midges of the subgenus Forcipomyia s. str. have terrestrial larvae feeding on fungi growing on rotting debris of plant origin, for example inside of stems or roots, in ant nests, in cow or horse dung, under rotting bark of trees (Szadziewski et al. 1997). Immature stages of Forcipomyia dichromata have not been reported and as a result their breeding habitat is unknown. The species has broad distribution in Western Palaearctic, however it is rarely reported. It was reported from Europe (Ukraine, France, Norway), Middle East (Israel, Turkey, Yemen), and Central Asia (Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan). From Poland and Spain it is recorded for the first time. Currently the number of biting midges reported from Poland (Szadziewski & Dominiak 2016) increased to 221 and from Spain (Delécolle 2002) to 194 species. In addition, the number of Ceratopogonidae recorded from the Łęg nad Swelinią reserve in N Poland (Gwizdalska-Kentzer 2011) increased to 50 species. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We are grateful to professor Piotr Sura from Kraków for collecting in Spain in 1984 a male of Forcipomyia dichromata. REFERENCES Alwin-Kownacka A., Szadziewski R., Szwedo J. 2016. Biting midges of the subfamily Forcipomyiinae (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from the Middle East, with keys and descriptions of new species. Zootaxa 4173(4): 351–378. Borkent A., Dominiak P. 2020. Catalog of the biting midges of the World (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Zootaxa 4787(1), 1–377. Borkent A., Dominiak P., Diaz F. 2022. An update and errata for the catalog of the biting midges of the world (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Zootaxa 5120(1): 53–64. Delécolle J.-C. 2002. Ceratopogonidae. In: Hjorth-Andersen, M.C.-T. (Ed.), Catálogo de los Diptera de España, Portugal y Andorra (Insecta). Monografias S.E.A., Sociedad Entomológica Aragonesa, Zaragoza, vol. 8, 323 pp. Gwizdalska-Kentzer M. 2011. Kuczmany (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) rezerwatu Łęg na Swelinią. Dipteron 27: 32–39. Navai S. 2021. Biting midges of the genus Forcipomyia Meigen, 1818 (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from Afghanistan, with description of a new species. Polish Journal of Entomology 90: 236–244. Fig. 2. Male of Forcipomyia dichromata Remm. A, B – third palpal segment, C – ventral aspect of genitalia, D – aedeagus, E – parameres. 4 Remm H. 1988. Family Ceratopogonidae, pp. 11–110, In: Soos A. (Ed.), Catalogue of Palaearctic Diptera. Volume 3. Ceratopogonidae-Mycetophilidae. Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest. Remm H., Zhogolev D.T. 1968. Contributions to the fauna of biting midges (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) of the Crimea [in Russian, English summary]. 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Diversity 13(7), 332: 1–31. Accepted: 27 July 2025; published: 10 October 2025 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/